New England Clam Chowder

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So you can make this recipe with organic heavy cream instead of the cashews and water, but this really does taste just as good, so if you’re gonna splurge on dairy, may as well make it some delicious cheese. I love the celery root in the recipe, but you can use parsnips or sweet potatoes as well. You can also use canned clams with some clam juice, but fresh is best when you can find them 🙂

Ingredients:

2 pounds fresh clams

4 ounces bacon, chopped

2 onions, finely chopped

1 large bulb celery root, thick outer skin removed and cut into 1 inch chunks (1 ½- 2 cups)

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 tablespoons fresh chopped thyme

3 bay leaves

2 cups cashews, soaked at least 4 hours and rinsed

3 cups water

Directions:

Wash clams well and steam in basket over 1 cup of water. Watch clams closely and remove as they pop open. Any clams that take significantly longer to open may be bad, so toss those. Pull clams from shells, chop meat, and set aside. Reserve steaming liquid. While you’re waiting for clams to steam, preheat 6-8 quart stock pot. Add bacon and cook until crispy. Remove bacon, add onions, and cook until translucent. Add reserved water from clam steaming plus 1 cup water (or chicken broth if you have on-hand). Add thyme, garlic, bay leaves, and celery root. Cover, turn to low, and cook for about 20 minutes, or until celery root is soft. In the meantime, blend cashews in food processor or high-speed blender. Slowly add 2 cups water, turning cashews to a silky cream. Add chopped clams and cashew cream to pot with chopped cooked bacon, season to taste with salt and pepper. You may also need to add more cooking liquid for desired consistency.